Woman hospitalized after family dog mauled her

Police shot and killed a pitbull last night after it attacked a woman in her Belmont home, leaving her hospitalized.

The woman, 21, remains in stable condition at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania after the dog bit her arms, legs and abdomen just after 5 p.m. in the family's home on Ogden Street near 42nd, said Officer Christine O'Brien, a police spokeswoman. The dog was a family pet, O'Brien added. It's unclear why the animal attacked.

Update: The American Medical Veterinary Society just alerted me that next week is National Dog Bite Prevention Week. Philadelphia ranked fifth nationally in the number of postal workers bitten by dogs (34 in 2012, according to the U.S. Postal Service), while Pennsylvania ranks fifth nationally in dog-bite-related insurance claims (165 claims worth $4.5 million, according to State Farm Insurance).